


A Good Kind of Mistake

by rumplestitlskin



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, I'm sorry about the title I am not a creative person at all, and also i wrote this instead of sleeping i dont know if it makes sense, divorced rumbelle au, idk about the ratings they make out a little, listen i had to write this bc i couldnt find any other fics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-15
Updated: 2016-03-15
Packaged: 2018-05-26 20:13:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,204
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6254299
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rumplestitlskin/pseuds/rumplestitlskin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A divorced! rumbelle au fic</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Good Kind of Mistake

**Author's Note:**

> *This takes place after the s4 finale (just pretend rumple gets the pure heart and doesn't fall under a coma. He also does not have any magic anymore)

Gold was annoyed, and it was only three in the afternoon. Grabbing the packed lunch, he threw some money atop the counter and exited Granny’s diner with an exhausted sigh. He hated the diner, and it wasn’t just because of the loathing looks he received from the other customers there. The diner had been one of the many places he had frequented with Belle back when they’d been together, and thinking about it now only brought the suppressed memories back.

Shaking off the bitter taste in his mouth, he moved slowly towards the shop. His limp had gotten worse the past few weeks, and he suspected it was from all the walking that he’d been doing since the divorce. Gold would start from his shop and go around the town, sometimes he would even head all the way to the town line and then walk back home.  
This became a routine soon enough, and though Archie had told him it was a wonderful idea to distract himself from thinking about Belle, it was the complete opposite actually. Gold never thought about anything other than her, and he would spot her during his walks, whether in the library or just chatting up strangers in the middle of the street.

He’d pretend not to see her, of course, but occasionally their eyes would meet and they would smile at each other rather awkwardly. The divorce, as bad as it sounded in his ears, had ended with them being on a neutral term. He had put off signing the divorce papers, which had angered her greatly, but one day he simply decided that there was no point in making the both of them miserable. She had stopped by his house that night, with the signed papers in her hand, and he had held her tightly while she wept in his arms. Gold knew she had tried her best to keep their marriage together, and wished that he had tried as hard as her.

He knew that separating from her was the only way she could try to be happy again, so he had to let her go. It took him a long time to adjust to her being gone, he’d wake up in the mornings and find that she was not next to him but as the months passed he became used to it. Solitary life was not something new to him after all. They hardly talked these days, they’d turned into one of those estranged couples who only exchanged pleasantries whenever they bumped into each other. Usually, he kept to himself and only left the shop for his meals or when he was heading back home.

Gold opened the door to his shop and was startled by the noise coming from inside. The first thing he saw was Belle, she was standing by the register with a frown on her face. He immediately panicked, wondering what he might’ve done to warrant a visit from an upset Belle. Gold then caught sight of Henry who seemed to be arguing with her about  
something.

The two of them had not noticed him yet as they were too busy yelling at each other. He closed the door behind him and cleared his throat. They stopped, and turned to him with apologetic faces. Belle couldn’t keep her eyes on him for too long, though, which he found amusing.

“I see I didn’t get an invitation to this party,” he said, smiling fondly at the boy.

“Hey, Grandpa,” Henry said with a grin.

“Yeah, uh, hey,” Belle mumbled weakly.

Gold nodded at the two of them, but mostly at Belle who was now fidgeting with the hem of her skirt rather nervously.

“Hey,” he whispered back, going to stand behind the counter.

There was a momentary silence in the air, and the three of them simply stared at their feet until Gold spoke again.

“So, to what do I owe the pleasure?” he began.

“Go on, tell him Henry,” Belle said disapprovingly.

Henry shrugged weakly at Gold, trying to find the right words to say. The boy was struggling to speak, and Belle was next to him tapping her foot impatiently with a cross look on her face. Gold, despite his cool manner, was sweating profusely as he had no idea what was happening or why they were in his shop. He was racking his brains, trying to figure it out.

‘Is this because I raised the rent for the nuns?’ he thought, wishing Henry would just talk already.

Belle must have seen his expression because she threw her hands up in frustration at Henry.

“Oh for goodness sake, Henry! It’s nothing to be ashamed of- just tell him already!” she exclaimed, making the poor boy next to her jump in shock.

“Look, Belle,” he paused, her name rolling off his tongue smoothly, “he’s obviously too distressed to tell me so why don’t you just come out and say it? What is this about?”

They were dragging this out too long and Gold suspected he would die from a heart attack from the suspense of not knowing. Belle crossed her arms, and nudged Henry again. 

The boy turned red, but he finally opened his mouth.

“I wrote this letter-to-Grace…”

Gold sighed in relief. This had nothing to do with him, he thought as he listened to Henry. 

“It was just a dumb thing about how I-I liked her and stuff but it was too embarrassing so I didn’t give it to her.”

He looked up at Belle, and there was a small smile on her lips when Henry mentioned Grace’s name. Gold couldn’t help but smile as well.

“So what’s the problem?” he asked quickly, turning to Henry when Belle caught him looking at her.

“I accidentally handed it over to my English teacher instead of my actual homework,” he cried out, burying his face in his hands.

Belle rolled her eyes and Gold chuckled lightly.

“I’m sure you can talk it out with your teacher, Hen-“

“-No! You don’t understand- Mr. Robertson hates me!” Henry interrupted him with another low groan.

“No, he doesn’t, Henry,” Belle murmured, patting him gently on the back.

“He always picks on me in class-if he sees that letter, he’ll make me read it in front of everyone and then Grace will hate me forever.”

“And you want me to-what? Talk to him about it?” Gold asked, leaning close towards Henry.

“He wants you to threaten Mr. Robertson, actually,” Belle replied.

Gold wouldn’t mind doing that, it had been a while since he had reminded the town of the man he was. Since the divorce, he had been vulnerable and people had taken advantage of his weak state to skip out on paying their rent. If he was going to give Robertson a shake, it would have to be somewhere public, so the rest of the townsfolk could see it.

“You’re-you’re not actually considering it, are you?” Belle sounded unsure and Gold shook his head.

“Of course not,” he lied, winking at her. He regretted it as soon as he did it, he looked away from her, his cheeks burning. Belle blinked, unsure if really did just wink at her.

“Like what?” Henry asked, irritated that Gold was siding with Belle in this situation.

“Like, Henry, you tell Mr. Robertson and accept whatever happens after that.”

Gold wanted to tell Belle she was wrong, and that he could make this problem go away in the blink of an eye. But he knew it would be pointless to argue with her, mostly because she always turned out to be right.

“That’s easy for you to say…” Henry’s voice trailed off, and the boy looked defeated.

“How exactly did you get involved in this?” Gold asked Belle.

Before she could speak, Henry had butted in.

“I made the mistake of asking her if the rumours about you beating up people were true. She followed me here and wouldn’t stop until I told her what I was planning to do,” Henry explained sourly.

“How nosy,” he teased, scrunching his nose.

“Oh, don’t you start with me,” Belle retorted.

“So you’re not helping me either, Grandpa?”

Gold thought for a moment.

“Why don’t you ask Regina? I’m sure the Madam Mayor will have more than a few words to say to the man who bullies her son at school.”

“No! Regina can’t know- if she finds out about Grace, she’ll tell Emma and Grandma and Grandpa. You know what they’re like… they won’t stay out of it. I just want this handled…quietly,” Henry replied in a rather somber tone.

“Well, I’m sorry Henry but I’m afraid I can’t help you,” Gold glanced at Belle when he said it, knowing full well he would get on Belle’s bad side if he did.

“See, Henry? Sometimes you make mistakes and you have to learn to deal with the consequences. It’s the right way to go,” said Belle with a nod of her head.

Gold wondered if perhaps she had meant it for him too, and not just Henry. It stung a little but the fact that she was standing in his shop right now made up for it. It had been too long since she had stepped foot in this place, and he was curious if she had noticed the vast changes he had done to the shop since she’d left him.

“Thanks for nothing,” the boy said gloomily, taking his leave.

Belle and Gold stood there for quite some time, unsure of what to say. He pretended she was not there and began to arrange the little vials on the shelf behind him. His heart was beating fast, and he pondered if she would talk to him. It had been different earlier when Henry had been around, there hadn’t been this much tension in the air as there was now.

“So, uh, thank you I guess.”

Gold turned around slowly, hiding his trembling hands behind his back so she couldn’t see just how much of a mess he was. He flashed a soft smile, and she returned it with an equally dazzling one.

“I didn’t really do anything.”

“It’s just- I didn’t want Henry to grow up thinking that all his problems could go away so easily. He needs to understand that life isn’t always easy…sometimes it’s hard too.” Gold was sure she was talking about them now.

“I just hope Robertson doesn’t give him too hard a time for that love letter,” and Gold was being sincere. He did not want Henry to give up on Grace just because of a silly mistake he’d made. 

“Yeah. I’ll go now-thanks for your time. I’m sorry we kept you from your lunch,” Belle whispered, pointing at the now forgotten lunch bag from Granny’s. He had not even realized that his stomach had been growling the entire time.

“It’s fine.”

“Oh, and, um, I love what you’ve done with the place. It seems much livelier now,” she said as she pulled the door open and vanished from his sight. The door closed behind him, bringing him back to reality.

He smiled faintly, reaching into the bag to pull out a burger. Belle had a point when she had said that life was not easy, he had come to realize that a little too late. He had always depended on his power, he had assumed that with enough power he would have been invincible. It was only after Belle left him that he understood that having power came at the cost of losing his happy ending.

But Henry was not like him, he thought. His grandson had made a tiny error, and had meant to fix it without causing any harm (except to Mr. Robertson). It would be unfair to let the boy go through this, and as much as Belle was right, he was going to have to act against it. He would figure out a way to get the letter without anyone else finding out what he’d done. Surely there was a way. There always was.  
**************************************************************************************************************************************************  
It was around midnight that Belle decided to leave for the school. She was dressed in a black top and sweatpants, and if anyone had seen her on the streets they would’ve thought she was a robber. She drove out to the school, and parked the car a mile away so no one would suspect anything.

Belle began to sneak towards the main gate, keeping an eye out for the security guard who would pass through. She already had a well thought out plan of what to say if she were to get caught, though she wished it wouldn’t come to that. As luck would have it, the school was deserted and there was no sign of security anywhere.  
Taking a deep breath, she sprinted towards the door. She rummaged through her pockets and pulled out a paper clip and attempted to pry the lock open. Belle had practiced it at home but she did not know if she would be lucky enough to unlock it. The clip snapped and she let out a gasp, looking around to see if anyone had seen or heard her.  
She tried the knob, and was surprised when the door opened for her.

“Was it unlocked the whole time?” she whispered to herself, slightly annoyed.

Belle peered into the darkened hallway, her heart beating fast at the thought of her breaking into the school. She knew where Robertson’s office was, she had been there before once when she’d visited the school to promote the library opening. He had invited her over to discuss about the type of books the students might be interested in. He was not a very interesting man but he did know about a lot of the books and she had enjoyed talking about it with him. She was sorry for breaking into his office but she was doing it for Henry.

The sound of her boots on the marble floor could be heard along the corridor, and she hoped no one else was there. She spotted Robertson’s name engraved on the door to his office and tried the knob and once again to her surprise, it was already unlocked. She wondered if the teachers even bothered locking up their offices.  
Belle entered the pitch black room, locking the door behind her. She turned the flashlight and-

“Get that thing off my face!”

She was startled, and almost dropped the flashlight. She somehow managed to stop herself from screaming out in shock as she aimed the light to where she had earlier and saw-

“Rumple! What are you doing here?” she exclaimed, looking down at the man who was sitting on the floor.

“As you can see,” he muttered sarcastically, “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.”

Shaking her head at his tone, she extended her hand to him and pulled him to his feet. She shone the light at the place he’d fallen and spotted his cane lying in the corner. Belle bent down to pick it up and handed it over to a grumbling Rumplestiltskin. 

The mystery behind the locked doors was finally solved, she thought. Rumple must have gotten in minutes before her, and he was more of an expert in breaking into places after all. She was grateful that he hadn’t thought to lock the doors behind him or she never would’ve been able to get in.

“What are you doing here?” she repeated.

“I could ask you the same thing.”

“I asked you first.”

“And I asked you second.”

“Rumple, stop fooling around or I swear-” she warned and it seemed to have worked.

“Alright, alright, I came here to get Henry’s letter from Robertson’s office,” he admitted, a guilty look flashing over his face. But it did not last too long, though.

“That’s why you’re here too, isn’t it?” 

He had a smug look on his face and it took everything Belle had to keep herself from strangling him. Of course he would ignore everything she had said and come here to help Henry out…it was just like him to do that. 

“What happened to all that talk about Henry learning to face the consequences of his actions?” Rumple asked, leaning close towards her. He noticed that it made her uncomfortable and stepped back slightly.

“I did mean what I said but this isn’t-I don’t want Henry to give up on Grace because he thinks she might like him any less for something silly he might have done,” she admitted, not quite looking at him.

“Oh, I see,” he said in that sarcastic way again.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You mean like us, that’s what you’re trying to say, isn’t it Belle?”

She had not expected to hear him say that, and had been caught off guard.

“No, of course not. I didn’t mean-“

“-Yes you did. Just admit it, Belle, there’s nothing wrong with that. What do you want me to say? That you’re right? Do you want me to say it out loud? That the reason our marriage didn’t work out was because I didn’t think you could ever love me?”

The words had slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself. Belle blinked back her tears, the wound in her heart she had tried so hard to heal had opened up again.

“No, that’s not why it didn’t work out. Our marriage failed because you were too scared, Rumple. You hid behind your power and your lies, you spent every waking moment deceiving me, Rumple. You were too frightened of opening up to me and that’s how you lost me. So don’t you dare blame me for us not working out,” she said, her voice barely audible.

He shook his head weakly, and his hand moved towards her but he changed his mind as it dropped to his side.

“I don’t blame you, Belle. Never,” he said, his voice hoarse.

“But that’s what you just said. You said we didn’t last because you didn’t think I loved you. I did, Rumple, I loved you with all I had. But in the end, it wasn’t enough to save us.”

She sniffled, and he stepped closer to her. Rumple dabbed away the tears on her cheeks gently. Belle could feel his fingers shaking as he cupped her face almost absent-mindedly and she let him. It had been so long since she had been this close to him, and she did not mind that he was leaning in close to her-

The two of them turned to the door at the same time when they heard the footsteps echoing down the hallway.

“Did you lock the door?” he asked her frantically and she nodded.

“We have to hide-quick!” Belle began to push him towards the back of the office, hoping whoever it was would not come in. It wasn’t a big room and they did not have a lot of options but she spotted a large closet by the corner and made a decision.

“Get in!” she ordered, and he stared at her in confusion.

“What-in there?” he asked incredulously.

She rolled her eyes as she pushed him into the closet, hearing him groan as his bad leg hit the side of the door. She mumbled an apology as she squeezed in with him, and was relieved to see that they could both fit inside. Belle closed the door, and tried to calm herself down.

Her breathing turned shallow, and the two of them waited to see if the footsteps would pass Robertson’s office. 

“This is the worst place you could’ve picked for us to hide in,” Rumple pointed out but she shushed him, her ears trying to pick up on any sound outside.

She stifled a gasp when she heard the door knob being turned. She hoped the person would see it was locked and would move on but to her dismay, it didn’t stop.  
Belle began to think up of a million excuses of what she’d say if she got caught. She had thought that breaking into Robertson’s office, finding the letter and getting out would have been an easy task. She had not expected to run into Rumple and get into yet another argument about their separation.

“Would you stop moving? I can’t concentrate!” she hissed. He was offended by that.

“I’m sorry to hear that but it’s cramped in here, if you haven’t noticed, and my leg hurts from standing like this!” he argued in a hushed tone.  
Belle only realized now just how close they were standing to each other. She looked down at his bad leg, and saw it was placed at an awkward angle. When she turned to face him, her nose bumped into his bottom lip and she couldn’t help but laugh at his distraught expression.

“I’m s-“

Before she could finish, he had closed the gap between them, his lip brushing against hers ever so lightly. She closed her eyes, and kissed him back exasperatedly. Belle felt something hard against her and she pulled away from him, leaving him breathless and confused.

“Rumple, is that-?” 

She followed his eyes down to see his pale hand clutching the cane that was pressed up against her. She forgot that there was someone trying to get inside the office and threw her head back to laugh, hitting her head against the wood.

He chuckled lightly before catching her lips with his once again, and it amazed Belle to see she had somehow managed to wrap her arms around his shoulder despite the limited space in the closet. Her fingers ran through his hair as she drowned in his soft touch. He deepened the kiss, and she held on tightly to him, hoping this moment would last forever.

The closer door was suddenly thrown open and they quickly broke away-

“Grandpa? Belle? What are you guys doing here?”

It was none other than Henry standing before them with widened eyes.

Belle quickly stepped out of the closet and patted down her wrinkled clothes, hoping Henry hadn’t seen what the two of them had been doing in there. She looked to Rumple to see if he could offer any explanation but he was leaned heavily against the door frame, trying to catch his breath. He looked like a mess, and he could hardly speak so she was on her own.

“We-we came here to, uh, see if you’d try and take the letter back! We were right in thinking you would after all,” she said, hoping her lie sounded convincing.

Henry raised his eyebrow and sneered.

“What are you both doing together?” he asked.

“What?” Both Belle and Rumple asked at the same time.

“Did you come here together?”

“No, no-we got here separately. Why does that matter? I’m so disappointed in you, Henry, after everything I told you…you still came back for the letter,” she hoped to guilt him so he’d forget about what he had seen. If anyone else caught word of this, she wasn’t sure she’d live to hear the end of it.

“Seeing as we’re already here, why don’t we just get it back? It would be such a waste if we came here for nothing…” his voice trailed away. 

“Right, yeah, but this is the last time, you hear me? Now, let’s get you back home or your mothers will have my head on a platter. Rumple will find the letter, won’t you, Rumple?”

“W-what? Y-yeah, of course,” he stuttered.

Belle held in a laugh as she squeezed Henry’s shoulder lightly.

“I’ll bring the car out front. Wait for me at the entrance, okay?” she called out to Henry as she walked out of the office, feeling happier than she had felt for months. It had been a mistake, what had happened between them just now, but it was the good kind. The kind she wouldn’t spend nights crying over.  
**********************************************************************************  
Henry was about to follow after Belle when the older man asked him to stay a little while.

“Henry, just now-whatever it was you think you, uh, saw-nothing happened between me and Belle,” Gold said slowly.

“Sure, Grandpa,” Henry replied, grinning.

“Good. That’s good-I guess I’ll let you leave now, then. Good night, Henry.”

Henry nodded as he walked towards the door. 

“Oh, and Grandpa?” 

“Yes, Henry?”

“You have a little bit of a lipstick stain on your shirt. I think its Belle’s,” Henry joked as Gold looked down at his stained collar in horror.

“Good night!” the boy yelled as he ran out with a laugh.

Gold had no idea where Robertson had stashed Henry’s letter but he had all night to find it. He did not mind being stuck here in the dark office, though, since he had Belle’s laugh locked away in his memories to keep him company all night. Gold knew that Belle was still mad about everything he had done but a small part of him had a feeling that she still loved him. It would take a long time for her to trust him again, that much he knew, but he was willing wait a hundred years for that if it meant they could be together again someday.


End file.
